Author's note: Hey, I hope this one didn't take too long. Glimpses isn't something I want to leave hanging and I meant to get this latest chapter poster sooner, but..well, I caught COVID. Thankfully, I got vaccinated and boosted beforehand, so it only really kick my ass for three days and I've been able to get to writing again. I decided it was time to do introduce another DC universe, along with characters from a certain DreamWorks film. I hope you all like it!
Earth-414
Metropolis
The city of Metropolis truly was a place to behold. Of all of the nation's bustling burgs, it stood out as the brightest of them all. While no place with such a large population could be completely pristine or devoid of unsavory elements, Metropolis was as close to the dream of such a place as a city could be. Its people knew that and, while some took it for granted, most very much appreciated it. In the case of one particular woman, the love she harbored for the shining city she called home could be seen on the face she was wearing as she soared through the sky above. This was something that she did quite often, because she was Metropolis' famous protector. From somewhere far below, one could hear a person call out the name she was known to the world as.
"Superwoman!"
Much like Metropolis itself, Superwoman was very much a beautiful sight, both in terms of her physical features and the eye-catching costume that hugged to her enviable figure. Said costume was red and blue in color. The fabric that covered most of her arms, legs, sides and torso was red, but with a blue segment that extended down from her chest to blue trunks. Within said blue section was the same 'S' shield symbol worn by Superman and Supergirl. She wore blue gloves and boots on her hands and feet, as well as a long blue cape that was connected to a blue mask the woman wore on her head, with openings for her lower face and eyes. Superwoman's skin was fair and rosy, while her eyes were a light bluish gray. There was also a slit on the backside of the mask that allowed a good portion of her bouncy, wavy ginger hair to poke out and fall to just past her shoulders.
"It's such a peaceful day today," Superwoman observed as she flew over the city. "Can't say I have a problem with that."
Then, out of nowhere, came a scream. Thanks to her enhanced sense of hearing, Superwoman could immediately discern that it was that of a child, most likely a young girl.
"Whoops. Looks like I spoke too soon." Superwoman said, turning her head.
The masked superheroine flew off in the direction she had heard the scream come from. Within less than two minutes, she reached her newfound destination. A small public park. Superwoman landed safely on the grass and promptly began to scope out the area to try and find the child she had heard. Confusingly, even though it was a fairly warm and sunny early afternoon, there didn't appear to be any people making use of the park; Neither of the two picnic tables had anyone sitting at them, the small playground had no children climbing on it, and the small bench that sat under a clutch of nearby trees was going unused, unless one counted the two nuthatches perched on its back.
"Okay, looks like it was a false alarm." Superwoman said to herself.
She walked over to the bench and sat down on it, resting her hands behind her head. It was very quiet. Perhaps too quiet. Superwoman stood back up.
"Is anyone here?" she loudly asked.
No response.
"Nobody better be messing with me." she then added.
"Well call me Bob Odenkirk then, because I actually am messing with you!" said an unseen man.
Superwoman was understandably rather surprised. She looked around and still failed to see anyone. The same voice could then be heard once more, having turned into an amused, raucous chortle. That's when Superwoman was able to determine where the sound was coming from; it was from the trees by the bench.
"Wait a second," she realized, "I know that voice."
"I would hope so, considering how often we run into each other." the man spoke again.
Then, before Superwoman's very eyes, one of the trees began to vanish. It had been nothing more than a realistic holographic projection, a copy of one of the real trees. With the image now gone, the previously hidden man stood revealed. He was a pasty skinned, brown haired, hazel eyed man with a wispy goatee mustache and playful, arched eyebrows. He looked to be at least a few years older than Superwoman. He wore a vibrant green suit blazer and dress pants over a light yellow shirt, a dark orange necktie, and brown loafers. He also had a large, fake orange flower and a smiley face button pinned to the blazer's chest pocket.
"Oswald Loomis, Jr., the Prankster! I should've known you'd be up to trouble again by now!" Superwoman hurled at him.
"Why yes, you really should have." The Prankster snickered.
He pulled out a little pull string doll from a pocket inside his jacket and tossed it to Superwoman, who caught it. The doll then produced the same scream that had first led her to the small public park. She dropped the doll to the ground.
"Like it? I stole it from Toyman's lair last week." The Prankster revealed.
"Schott's been in jail for almost two months now." Superwoman stated.
"Well duh! That's why it was so easy to break in," The Prankster nodded. "Thanks for that, by the way."
Superwoman glared at him.
"I'm not in the mood for any of your horseplay, Loomis." she said.
"No need to worry on that front, sexy lady. I'm actually allergic to horse hair, so I wouldn't…"
Superwoman zipped up and grabbed her old foe by his tie. He remained completely at ease, not seeming intimidated at all.
"Was this your 'evil scheme'? To pester me?" the caped redhead questioned.
"Hey, this is no way to talk to your nemesis!" The Prankster jokingly admonished her.
"You're not my nemesis, Loomis." she matter-of-factly stated.
"Well, I'm closer to the role now that Luthor has kicked the bucket!" the mustachioed mischief maker cackled. "For instance…"
He reached up to the plastic flower clipped to his blazer's pocket and pressed down on it. It opened up to reveal a small collection of glowing green pebbles.
"What the-gaaah!" Superwoman gasped.
She toppled down onto the grass and began to writhe in agony. The Prankster smugly grinned and loomed over her, watching it happen with a gleeful satisfaction as he let the pebbles fall out of the fake flower and around Superwoman.
"Kryptonite…" she groaned.
"That's right. Don't even ask me where I got it from. It's not enough to kill you, but it should keep you helpless for a spell." he gloated.
His eyes widened, as if he had almost expected to wake up from a dream, only for no such thing to occur. The Prankster had clearly never seen Superwoman in such a state before, at least not in person. He wouldn't mind getting used to seeing her in such a state.
"Oh my god…" he whispered, "…I'm doing it. I'm gonna beat Superwoman."
He paused and solemnly looked to the sky. Superwoman noticed this and wondered what The Prankster would say next, figuring it would be an attempt at a proud, dignified declaration of self worth.
"Eat that, Lex Lose-thor! Suck on it, you old fart!"
Even though she was still in pain, Superwoman couldn't help but to roll her eyes, though even doing that wasn't as easy as it normally would be. She could tell that The Prankster had been right before; the kryptonite wasn't potent enough to kill her, but it was enough to render her a sitting duck for the time being.
"Now, the time has come to learn who you really are beneath the mask, sexy lady!" The Prankster declared.
He kneeled down next to Superwoman's face and reached forward to yank off her mask. Just before his hand could make contact with it, it was struck by a light blue energy beam. The Prankster was so surprised that he couldn't even say anything as the blue energy then spread over his entire body and he was hoisted up into the air, revealing it to be some form of tractor beam. Superwoman, while still struggling to move because of the kryptonite pebbles, managed to turn her head in the direction the beam had come from. Both she and The Prankster were met by an unexpected sight; It was two bizarre looking newcomers to the scene, whom neither of them recognized. The one holding the ray gun that the tractor beam was coming from was a thin humanoid alien man with an exceptionally large, hairless cranium, sky blue skin, vibrant green eyes, and a thin black goatee. His attire consisted of a skin-tight full bodysuit made of black leather, with a deep blue, upside down lightning bolt on the chest, black leather boots, black leather gloves with small metal spikes on them and a long black cape with a high, vaguely fin-like collar, blue inner lining, and metal spike covered shoulder pads. The second figure standing just behind him was even stranger in appearance, as they could only be described as an expressive faced, vaguely piranha-like alien fish in a tank of water that served as the head, for lack of a better term, a mechanical body made to look like that of an upright, adult gorilla. It even had faux fur even though the body was blatantly not organic.
"It appears that we stepped in at the perfect moment!" the blue-skinned alien man proclaimed. "Now, I think some introductions are in ord-"
"Who the hell are you two to get in my way?!" The Prankster howled in anger.
"Well he was about to tell you who we are before you interrupted, you Silly Willy," the alien fish spoke up in a friendly tone. "If you really want to know, this handsome fella here is Megamind and I'm his minion. You can call me Minion."
The large headed alien, revealed to be called Megamind, sighed. He'd wanted to announce himself in a more bombastic fashion. Still, he knew that there were more important matters at hand.
"Uh yes, very good, Minion. Now please go dispose of those dreadful rocks that are vexing this 'Superwoman'." Megamind commanded.
"Right away, sir!" Minion smiled.
Minion ran up to Superwoman and hurriedly picked up all the kryptonite pebbles that had left her so weak. He then shoved them into a small, barely visible slot on his robot body's chest. Superwoman got back up on her feet with ease, already feeling her health and power beginning to return. So the assist was very much welcomed, she couldn't help but to be a little bewildered with the situation.
"Um...Thanks." she said.
"Don't mention it," Minion said. "Ooo! Here it comes!"
The kryptonite pebbles then popped up into the water tank that stored Minion. Superwoman watched as he gnashed them up with his sharp teeth, gulped the bits down, and let out a satisfied, strangely cute little burp. She did not let the odd display go uncommented on.
"I seriously just saw a fish in a gorilla suit eat kryptonite." Superwoman stated.
"Yup!" Minion grinned. "I bet you never expected to say that."
"You would win that bet." she smirked.
The two looked over at Megamind, who was still using his ray gun to hold The Prankster up in the air.
"You're head is stupid!" The Prankster shouted down, sounding very childish. "No way am I going to get sidelined by other super-villains!"
"You insult me. I'm a good boy now," Megamind noted before shifting focus to Superwoman. "Are you alright, miss?"
"I'm definitely better with that kryptonite gone," Superwoman answered. "Thanks for the assist. It's Megamind, right?"
"Correct. I am Megamind, the genius protector of Metrocity!" Megamind proudly told her.
"He means 'Metro City'." Minion chimed in.
"Never heard of it," the superheroine said. "Or either of you for that matter."
Megamind and Minion shared a chuckle for just a moment.
"Oh right. We hadn't gotten to that part yet," Megamind realized. "You see, we're from a parallel universe, Superwoman. Now I know what you're thinking; 'Parallel universes are real? Holy Guacamole!' You see, there exists multiple realities which-"
"Stop. You don't need to explain. I already know what the Multiverse is." Superwoman informed them.
Both Megamind and Minion were both clearly surprised, with their mouths briefly hanging open.
"Oh." Megamind said.
Just then, before anyone could say anything else, the ray gun in Megamind's hand made a low, pitiful sounding beep. The tractor beam vanished and The Prankster fell down right on top of Megamind. The Prankster produced a tiny can with a paper wrapper that read "Peanut Brittle" in fat, cartoony letters. The longtime foe of Metropolis' dazzling defender quickly threw it right at Minion like it was a sports ball. The instant it made contact with him, the can exploded and caused Minion to go flying back into the nearby picnic tables, which was crushed under his robot suit's weight. The Prankster shoved Megamind's face into the dirt.
"It'll take more than that to stop me, sexy laddie!" The Prankster boasted.
"Enough!" Superwoman shouted.
She zipped up to her enemy and decked him right in the face. The Prankster toppled over, now defeated. Superwoman helped Megamind get back on his feet. Minion, whose suit hadn't been significantly damaged, dashed up to the two.
"Oh no, Sir! Are you okay?!" the concerned Minion asked as he brushed the dirt off Megamind's cheek.
"Why of course I'm okay, Minion. I'm a 'sexy laddie'. Whatever that means." Megamind responded nonchalantly.
"Not to be rude, but now that Loomis is outta the way I kinda need to know what your guys' deal is. Unless you're uncomfortable with that." requested Superwoman.
"Not at all." Megamind said.
"Great. Just hold on for a sec," Superwoman said as she effortlessly lifted up the knocked out Prankster. "I'll be right back."
Before Superwoman could begin to fly off as planned, a large shadow appeared above the park. She, Megamind, and Minion all looked up to see what could be best described as a sleek, metallic aircraft that looked somewhat alien in terms of design. It hovered above them before lowering to the ground.
"Well that came out of nowhere." Minion gulped.
"Should…we be worried?" Megamind queried.
"Not necessarily. I tend to get along pretty well with the Space Ranger assigned to Earth." Superwoman told them.
Megamind and Minion both looked at each other, both perplexed, with neither understanding what Superwoman was talking about. The futuristic vessel then gained a door, which opened up, and a beige skinned, black haired, blue eyed human woman then stepped out of it and onto the grass in front of the blue and red clad superheroine and her newfound allies. She wore a light yellow pilot jumpsuit with small shoulder pads and a thick belt that were both hot pink. She also wore hot pink gloves and boots and was holding a translucent bluish white helmet under her right arm and a green pistol-like weapon in her left hand. She and Superwoman smiled at one another amicably. The woman reattached her weapon to her belt and walked up. Superwoman handed off The Prankster to Minion to hold.
"Hey, Bobbi!" Superwoman greeted her.
"Hey, Kristin," the woman replied. "I know I probably should've called ahead, but I caught wind of there being some kryptonite in the wrong hands here on Earth."
The two began to talk to each other about what was going on while Megamind and Minion stood aside while The Prankster.
"Ah, I get it now," said Megamind. "They are acquainted."
"I guess so." Minion smiled.
The duo then followed the two into Bobbi's ship. After placing The Prankster into a small room that Bobbi identified as the brig, the four gathered together at a round table. The time had come for certain topics to be discussed.
"So you two are from another universe? Why are you in ours?" Bobbi asked.
"That's right. We've been journeying the Multiverse with a device of my own creation. We've been cataloging the native heroes in case any end up coming into our own." Megamind confirmed.
"That adds up," Bobbi said. "I've never seen anyone in our universe who are the same species as the two of you. Though the fishy guy here does vaguely remind me of some Rhapsodian creatures I've met before."
"I overheard Bobbi call you 'Kristin', right?" Minion asked the Metropolis based heroine.
"Yeah, because that's my name," she answered as she pulled back her mask. "My name is Kristin Olsen."
"Since we're giving out names, mine's Roberta Edmonton, but everyone calls Bobbi. The public knows me as Space Ranger since I am a part of the greater intergalactic peacekeeping organization." Bobbi went next.
"Yes, yes. Very good," Megamind nodded. "Except one thing; Why does this universe need 'Space Rangers' if it already has Green Lanterns?"
"Green Lanterns? Those guys disbanded just short of one hundred years ago. That's how the story goes at least." Kristin said.
"She's right. The Space Rangers were founded by a Kryptonian named Riex-Tarr to take their place," Bobbi explained. "That's what they tell all the new recruits when they arrive for training on Vathlo."
"Intriguing. Where is this planet called Vathlo?" Megamind questioned.
"Vathlo isn't a planet," Bobbi informed him. "It's an island continent back on Krypton."
"Oh, kind of like Australia…" Minion noted to himself before gasping. "Did you just say Krypton?!"
"But Krypton was destroyed!" Megamind exclaimed, also shocked. "At least…it was in every universe we've visited before this one, that is. How unusual. Wait…"
He looked at Kristin and pointed at her.
"...If Krypton wasn't destroyed, you couldn't be here." Megamind opined. "Why would your parents send you here as a child if-"
"I'm not Kryptonian. I'm human." Kristin stated.
Megamind and Minion were both stunned by this revelation.
"You're no doubt questioning how I gained my powers. Well, I'm happy to explain," Kristin said. "A few years ago a Kryptonian named Kal-El came to this world. He approached my dad and I and told us about an alternate timeline he had somehow gained knowledge of, one where he became a hero for Earth after Krypton blew up. He had seen the good his alternate self had done for the universe, and decided that even if he couldn't be that same hero, he could help us to have one just as good of him by finding a way to give a human all the powers a Kryptonian would on Earth. For whatever reason, he decided I was the best choice. Me, the daughter of a Daily Planet photographer. It took him a while for him to convince me to try it, but he apparently knew just how well my parents raised me."
Megamind eyes lit up.
"Of course. Now it makes sense. Thank you for being open with us, Ms. Olsen. Apologies for our…alarmed reactions just then. I should've been prepared to expect some surprises from the Multiverse."Megamind expressed.
"Yeah, we've learned that things can actually vary wildly," Minion added. "In at least one reality, Megamind's people evolved differently. They had smaller heads and were called the Kree Empire. Oops, sorry for getting off topic. Again, thanks for telling us how you became Superwoman, Ms. Olsen."
"Kal-El couldn't have made a better choice, Kristin," Bobbi spoke up, placing her own hand on hers. "If it weren't for you, Metropolis wouldn't have survived the Split."
Kristin smiled. It had been a great while since she had doubted her role as a superhero, but it still never hurt to have other do-gooders reassure her of her legitimacy as one.
"I assume that 'the Split' is what you call the time when half of the population disappeared. It happened in our universe too, and in every one we've been to so far." Megamind stated.
"Yeah, we know. It happened because of a man called the 'Mad Titan'. Another traveler from a different reality appeared on Krypton and told the Space Ranger Command Delegation all about it. It helped to quell potential paranoia." Bobbi revealed.
"…Oh. Alright then," Megamind said flatly before lightening up. "…Could it be possible for us to also see Krypton? It sounds like there's a lot about this universe that we could learn there."
Kristin and Bobbi looked at each other knowingly and then smiled at their new acquaintances. A giant brain wasn't necessary for Megamind ato tell that he'd be granted his request. Soon they'd all be soaring through the stars to an astounding, thriving planet.
So yeah, I decided to bring in Megamind along with this new DC universe. I had wanted to use the characters from the film for a while now, but it just never really clicked until I thought of having Megamind and Minion meet an atypical Superperson based on an obscure character from the comics. I'll explain that below in...
Some Notes:
- Kristin Olsen/Superwoman is inspired by the character of Kristin Wells, a far future descendant of Jimmy Olsen who was introduced in DC Comics Annual #2. In the story of her grand total of five appearance, Kristin was a college student from the 29th who traveled back in time and inadvertently became Superwoman, a famous figure in her own time period, using a device called the Opal Amulet. Here, she heavily changed. This Kristin is Jimmy's daughter and she was instead altered by a Kal-El who wanted Earth to have a Superman-like hero, even if he wasn't the one to be said hero.
- Earth-414's numbering comes from the date April 14th, because the above mentioned DC Comics Annual #2 was published April 14th, 1983.
- Bobbi Edmonton's given name is a tribute to Bob Brown, the artist for the comics' original Space Ranger, Rick Starr. Her last name is also one to Edmond Hamilton, who co-created Starr with Gardner Fox.
- I thought it'd be interesting to have Earth-414 be very different on the cosmic front by having it be a universe where Krypton was still around and the Green Lanterns were replaced by an organization based on the Space Ranger. Riex-Tarr, the stated founder of the organization, is, as most would likely figure out, a Kryptonian counterpart of Rick Starr.
- The bright yellow and hot pink uniform that Bobbi wears is inspired by the cover of Showcase #15, where Rick Starr made his debut. On the cover, the colorization makes the red look like hot pink (at least in my eyes), so I decided to go with that instead because I just liked the idea of an entire Green Lantern Corps-style group, be they man, woman, or other, wearing yellow and pink.
- This version of Prankster is the son of an elderly Oswald Loomis who never became a bad guy. I decided to use Prankster because I thought it'd be fun to utilize a Superman foe that we had yet to see pop up anywhere in the Infinity Crisis multiverse.
- Yes, I decided to make it so that Megamind is a member of his reality's version of the Kree. With the blue skin and the advanced tech, it just made sense to me. Bobbi saying Minion reminded her of some Rhapsodians is a reference to Monster Buster Club. In that show, the true forms of Cathy and her grandfather were both kind of reminiscent of sea life (albeit still both human sized and land dwelling), so I thought it'd be fun to at least suggest that Minion could be a Rhapsodian sea creature.
- Megamind and Minion learned all they did about Superman, Krypton, the Green Lanterns and the Kree because they previously explored other, undetermined DC and Marvel based universes before arriving on Earth-414. I figured that could make for good story potential for myself or another writer, if they're interested in such a thing.
- Leaving the door open for story potential (Once again, for both myself or for anyone who may be interested in that plot point) is the same reason I didn't pin down who exactly it was who told the Space Ranger leadership about Thanos and the Infinity Stones.
- Did you like the shout out to Nobody? ...Well, Prankster liked it at least.
The next thing I'll post will be Chapter 2 of His Hazelnut Heart. Not sure when it'll be done, but I'll do my best to have it ready soon. I hope you enjoyed this and found it an interesting addition to the series. That should be everything for today. Be kind to yourselves and thanks for giving this a look.